A Comparative Study Of Two Chinese Versions Of Chinese Characteristics From The Perspective Of Re-contextualization

Context plays an important role in translation. The various factors of context restrict the translators’ understanding and expression of discourse. As a crucial factor in translation studies, context has attracted wide attention from translation theorists and translators both abroad and in China. Based on Juliane House’s theory of "translation as re-contextualization", this thesis argues that translators should analyze and understand the source text in context and then re-construct a context which is closet to the original one in the target language so that the readers of target text can have a better appreciation of the emotions and intentions which the author endeavours to convey.Supported and elaborated by examples selected from two Chinese versions of Chinese Characteristics by the American missionary Arthur Smith, this thesis discusses the positive roles which contextualization and re-contextualization play in the course of translation (especially the translation of cultural-specific words). In Chinese Characteristics, Arthur Smith depicts the daily life, psychology, and social customs of Chinese people in a detailed way. By selecting corresponding examples and dividing them into different cultural categories, the present author attempts to explore the different translation strategies adopted by different translators and the reasons why they adopt such strategies. This thesis concludes, drawing on detailed analyses and comparisons, that translators of both Chinese versions have fully considered the various factors of context and achieved the goal of re-contextualization in target texts. Covert translation and overt translation as two strategies of re-contextualization are of great significance to be employed during the process of translation. Furthermore, back translation can also be used as an effective way of re-contextualization and the translator should avoid mistranslations.